這篇是說朴槿惠總統，透過民選回到了曾經小時候，使她政治效能感加強的，朴正熙將軍的青瓦台，在這裡有這位朴總統的小時候的不愉快和磨練，小小年紀就要代替被暗殺的母親的禮賓角色。

南韓是到了李明博要交棒給同為新國家黨的朴槿惠時，確立了兩黨制，而經濟也獲得更進一步，受良好治理規畫，政治、行政和市場經濟並行的國度使人愉悅。筆者拿出了2008年首爾市的觀光城市外交的歌詞開頭，雖然大財團壟斷或支配的情形嚴重，但是國族意識高漲，民族復興和自信心凌駕了一切，而經濟受政治寬鬆政策，及尊重專業官僚下，雖然蹣跚了些，仍然在2018年，年人均超過美金三萬元。

這天的選舉，為民主黨提名的文在寅雖然敗下陣來，但在2017年補選時獲共同民主黨提名勝選，擔任總統至今。朴槿惠因崔順實事件，在2017年3月10日遭憲法法院彈劾下台。

這天選舉結果因為是原來的執政黨繼續連任，維持平和順利，首爾各地萬人空巷兼具古典及現代藝術之美。算起來李明博在2008的美國次貸危機中脫困，並且在任上以年均近3%穩定推進，朴總統還很謙虛的以家家戶戶盤中飧為念，要苦民所苦。世宗大王的「教誨」是朴槿惠拿來承先啟後的依據。朴在任上和美國軍事上升級簽訂全球性的夥伴，也不忘所仰慕的中華文化，和中國簽訂FTA，還幫忙修建「安重根紀念館」。

（待續）

South Koreas presidential election

A homecoming

Dec 19th 2012, 22:50 by D.T. | SEOUL

SOUTH KOREA has elected Park Geun-hye, a 60-year-old conservative, as president for the coming five years. The candidate is from the same party, the Saenuri party, as the incumbent, Lee Myung-bak. She is the daughter of Park Chung-hee, the dictator who set South Korea on the path of break-neck development, seizing power in 1961 and assassinated by his security services in 1979. Ms Park thus becomes South Korea’s first woman president. Curiously, she also has the distinction of having once been the country’s first lady, following the assassination of her mother in 1974 by a North Korea sympathiser. Having grown up in the Blue House, South Koreas presidential mansion, she now returns there.

Ms Park defeated the main liberal candidate, Moon Jae-in of the Democratic United Party (DUP), by 51.6% to 48%, following a tight contest that had everyone guessing until the end. Turnout was nearly 76%, despite bone-chilling weather. Such a high figure was expected to favour Mr Moon, since he had support among the young, who tend to drag their feet on the way to the polls.

After her victory Ms Park spoke in Gwanghwamun, near the main royal palace in Seoul and in front of a statue of the 15th-century Confucian, King Sejong. She called her win a "victory brought by the peoples hope". Mr Moon has congratulated Ms Park, and apologised to his supporters for not being able to "keep his promise".

As much as anything, the election was a battle of the generations. Those in their 20s and 30s fell behind Mr Moon, while those in their 50s and older—a growing segment in a fast-aging country—overwhelmingly chose Ms Park. In Gwanghwamun, older voters were in party spirit, dancing and chanting her name. They are more likely to look back with nostalgia on the rule of her strongman father and his era of rapid growth and full employment. This worked in Ms Parks favour today. In the Hongdae student district, by contrast, 20-somethings had tears in their eyes. But they were outnumbered: for the first time in a presidential election, more voters were above 50 than under 40.

For all that each candidate appealed to different groups, both campaigned chiefly on the issue of what came to be called, in regrettably clumsy parlance, "economic democratisation". It meant reining in the power of the influential families that control the handful of South Korea’s dominant conglomerates, known as chaebol. And it meant increasing the security, for instance, through welfare spending, of those left behind now that the era of development-at-all-costs is ending.

The Saenuri Party has historically been firmly behind the chaebol, so Ms Park’s tack to the centre had alarmed the party’s core supporters. But the strategy first proved successful in elections for the National Assembly last April, and then again today. Her instincts will now be to tack back to the right. But she will be closely watched to see how she deals with such problems as overly cosy arrangements among conglomerate affiliates, as well South Koreas growing number of irregular workers, many of them youngsters, who were hired without full employment rights.

As for foreign policy, South Korea’s alliance with America will be reaffirmed. Ms Park will have few warm and fuzzy feelings for China, but she will acknowledge its importance as South Koreas main trading partner. She will persist with the country’s pursuit of free-trade agreements after Mr Lee leaves the Blue House in February.

The president-elect inherits troubled relations with Japan, given friction over the Dokdo islets (known in Japan as Takeshima) and the historical issue of wartime sexual enslavement of Korean women. The emphatic general-election victory in Japan on December 16th for the conservative Liberal Democratic Party and its leader, Shinzo Abe, who denies Japanese wartime atrocities, will not, on the face things, help. On the other hand, Ms Park’s father, like so many Koreans of the post-war order, had during the Japanese occupation been a collaborator, an officer in the Japanese imperial army. Ms Park would do the country a favour by pointing out that matters of history need to be faced honestly by all sides.

As for the country’s relations with North Korea, these have been essentially frozen since Lee Myung-bak made clear that he was not going to be blackmailed by a dictatorship that set off nuclear devices, launched rockets and sank a South Korean naval vessel. Ms Park is in no danger of going so far as her liberal opponent, Mr Moon, who appeared to want a return to the “sunshine policy” of a decade ago; it served the North well in terms of oodles of aid with few strings. But she is certainly readier than Mr Lee to seek an opening. She will, she says with not much precision, “reach a balance between hard-line and overly dovish stances" towards the North. She appears unlikely to make many unconditional gestures.

For the Democratic United Party, todays result is a blow. Mr Moon’s campaign had insufficient time to recover from the challenge of Ahn Cheol-soo, a centre-left political outsider who set the race on fire but who threatened to split the liberal vote and who stepped down in favour of Mr Moon only in November. He then took time to throw his support behind Mr Moon. The election was fought chiefly over issues of economic inequality. That ought to have been classic DUP ground. There will now be much soul-searching on the political left.

(Picture credit: AFP)

« Malaysia’s elections: Down to the wire

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·        

A homecoming

Dec 21st 2012, 10:57

“Let’s chant S.E.O.U.L.

- a wonderful world having dream come true.

- wherever laughter always accompanies.” - Infinitely Yours, Seoul.

From the below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=up6n1WrB7aE

With Super Junior and Girl’s Generation’s encounter, a combination of creativity and fortune expands from a corner of North-Eastern Asia to this world until this hope spreads into a future of limitless potential.

Nearly 10 years ago, when Lee Myung-bak started his term of Seoul mayor, Han river was planned to be integrated with conception of remains of Li’s Chosen through unique-aesthetics sewer system in case of flood. Very soon, South Korea, now the 4th-largest economy in Asia, is due to welcome a new capital, Sejong City, next summer.

A more fantastic, charming Korea appears. Everyone’s dream, like Korean drama, reflects on numerous drawing papers one after another. There is no exception of the newly-elected president, Park Geun-hye who was the eldest daughter of a strongman Park Chung-hee. The late Park, assassinated by his puppet in intelligence agency, ruled over South Korea creating well-known “Han-river miracle” in aspect of economic growth. Mr. Park was an English teacher in elementary school and thereafter joined Japan’s Imperial Army in world war two. Having been a brigadier general since Korean War, he led military coup that controlled the regime from 1961 to 1978.

From her childhood, the well-cultivated political efficacy, affected by her father in the president mansion Cheongwadae, has her smoothly be supported by the 40s or the olders in this election. Graduated from Sogong University’s department of electronic engineering, she is South Korea’s first female leader since Empress Myungsong ruled more than a century ago. She, of the ruling New Frontier Party, addressed the victory speech in front of Gwanghwamun, the main gateway and a symbol of Great Han Empire under the miserable Emperor Gojong, awakening Korean sensation of soft power.

“South Korea’s economy is still difficult. I will create a country where nobody worries about putting food on the table.”, she said.

According to Bloomberg, after disappearing from public view following her father’s death, she became a legislator in 1998 and lifted the Grand National Party at the ballot box in the 2000s, when it was in the opposition. She lost the party’s nomination for president to the outgoing leader, Lee Myung-bak, in 2007.

It’s predicted that Park would keep the regional peace with Japan’s recently-recovering leader Shinzo Abe. Meanwhile, she may take an approach of closer relation with Washington D.C. and Tokyo than ever in case of North Korea’s military expansion, including possible consequence of last week’s satellite launching or potential nuclear weapon. She has passive attitude toward foreign affair with Beijing but still push forward the signature in Free Trade Agreement (FTA) among three East-Asian nations.

In practice, Park plays a good role of a negotiator improving improve inter-Korean ties. She once met the late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il 10 years ago. North Korea is now likely to use the talks to try to secure food aid and economic cooperation from the South after the talk with Japan in Mongolia.

In retrospect of recent 1-year period, Asian four capitals - Tokyo, Beijing, Seoul and Pyongyang - owns their respective new leader to have a mutual characteristic, the older’s inheritance which are renaissance ones owing to their loyal patrimony.

Expediting the bomb attack near border and the protest of farmer against FTA, 2012’s South Korean economic growth is predicted to get only 2.4%. According to Bloomberg, yesterday, the founder in South Korea’s dominant conglomerates (chaebol), Kang Duk-soo, dismantled his life’s work. This action makes South Korea’s economy blue more. By contrast, South Korea’s economy depends on China’s very much. With a view to China’s Foreign Direct Investment, South Korea has already made further and won more advantage of China’s high growth than Taiwan, the previously main competitor.

Three months later, on Feb. 25, Park will be inaugurated as the 18th President as her father was a half century ago. In either way of King Sejong’s flourishing Confucius dynasty or Emperor Gojong’s hardening self-respectful dignity, there is no difference chasing for the progress and prominence to Korean.

Last month’s 3 leaders of Asian nation, pictured together with Cambodia’s Hun Sen as the potential of systematizing unity in East Asia, turn to a historic pages soon. Compared to the MRT in front of Gwanghwamun in 1900s, more prosperity and communication with international community processes. The banner of Samsung and Hyundai go around the world. A Korean drama “Be Strong, Geum Soon”, or “Splendid Geum Soon” that my mother and I feel interesting in, shows ordinary’s everyday life. Whatever party rules, keeping the knowledge of people’s life is the only way of stable politics.

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註：在筆者第一段引用的「首爾城市外交之歌」的全文歌詞如下～

圭賢
어느세 하루가 또 지나가고
不知何時日子一天過一天
집으로 향한 나의 발걸음
走在回家路上的我的腳步
부푼 가슴에 처음 시작했던 그 맘 그대로
依舊滿懷著當時的那份心情

Jessica
가끔은 피곤한 일상속에 지쳐버린 내 몸을 이끌고
偶爾在煩亂的日常生活中 讓疲憊不堪的我
길을 따라서 숨쉬고 있는 나의 자유
重新能夠向前走 能夠喘息的那份自由

Super Junior
Yes!느껴봐 희망 가득한 세상
Yes! 試著感受吧 滿懷希望的這個世界

Girls Generation
Yes!적저기 높은 미래 향해서
Yes!向著無限可能的未來前進

全體
S.E.O.U.L 함께 불러봐요 꿈이 이뤄질 아름다운 세상
一起呼喚S.E.O.U.L吧！能夠實現夢想的這個美麗世界

厲旭
어디서나 즐거움이 넘치는 곳 사랑해
無論在哪 歡樂隨處可見 我愛你

全體
S.E.O.U.L 함께 외쳐봐요 어디서라도 웃을 수 있는
一起呼喊S.E.O.U.L 吧 無論何處都能夠暢懷大笑

太妍
행복 모두가 하나되는 세상
創造與幸福合而為一的世界


東海
어디서 꺼져버린 내 모습 후회없이 살진 않았는지
不知在何處遺落的我 是否沒有遺憾地生活
부푼 희망의 처음 설레였던 그맘 그대로
如最初那般鼓動著希望的心情依然

徐賢
알수없는 내일이 궁금해
對於未知的明天充滿好奇
어렵고 험한일이 생겨도 견딜수 있어
就算有著艱難危險也可以支持下去
네게 부끄럽지 않도록
能夠無愧於你

Super Junior
Yes!느껴봐 희망 가득한 세상
Yes! 試著感受吧 滿懷希望的這個世界

Girls Generation
Yes!적저기 높은 미래 향해서
Yes!向著無限可能的未來前進

全體
S.E.O.U.L 함께 불러봐요 꿈이 이뤄질 아름다운 세상
一起呼喚S.E.O.U.L吧！能夠實現夢想的這個美麗世界

厲旭
어디서나 즐거움이 넘치는 곳 사랑해
無論在哪 歡樂隨處可見 我愛你

全體
S.E.O.U.L 함께 외쳐봐요 어디서라도 웃을 수 있는
一起呼喊S.E.O.U.L 吧 無論何處都能夠暢懷大笑

Sunny
행복 모두가 하나되는 세상 만들어요
創造與幸福合而為一的世界

晟敏
두려운 날도 때론 힘이들때도
痛苦的日子 偶爾感到疲憊時也

太妍
모두가 힘을 모아 꿈의 날개를 펼쳐요
大家一起努力張開夢想的翅膀

全體
S.E.O.U.L 함께 불러봐요 꿈이 이뤄질 아름다운 세상
一起呼喚S.E.O.U.L吧！能夠實現夢想的這個美麗世界

厲旭
어디서나 즐거움이 넘치는 곳 사랑해
無論在哪 歡樂隨處可見 我愛你

全體
S.E.O.U.L 함께 외쳐봐요 어디서라도 웃을 수 있는
一起呼喊S.E.O.U.L 吧 無論何處都能夠暢懷大笑

圭賢&Jessica
행복 모두가 하나되는 세상 만들어요
創造與幸福合而為一的世界

附一篇2013年年初，1月5日的文章，朴瑾惠總統從軍隊巡視開始職務。

South Korea’s new president

Plenty on her plate

Park Geun-hye prepares to address some of her father’s legacy

Jan 5th 2013 | SEOUL | from the print edition

PARK GEUN-HYE’S campaign advertising described her as a “prepared female president”. Having narrowly defeated the Democratic United Party (DUP) candidate, Moon Jae-in, on December 19th, two-thirds of her slogan will be realised with her inauguration on February 25th. The “prepared” part, however, is less clear.

South Korean presidents-elect appoint transition teams to help smooth their way into office and many of their members then take up posts in the new government. With her appointments, Ms Park seems to be trying to bridge the political divide. Her transitional team, consisting of nine subcommittees, is headed by Kim Yong-joon, a former head of South Korea’s Constitutional Court.

Mr Kim is a conservative like Ms Park, but is not seen as hardline by the 48% who voted for Mr Moon. As a young judge in 1963, he even ruled against the detention of an army chief-of-staff who had opposed Ms Park’s father, the dictator Park Chung-hee. Ms Park has also taken care to give prominent roles to natives of Jeolla province, such as Han Kwang-ok, head of the subcommittee on national unity. Jeolla suffered under successive military regimes in the past, and always votes for the DUP rather than Ms Park’s Saenuri Party.

The rallying cry of the election was “economic democratisation”, a fluffy term that has two main strands, both of which Ms Park seems to be sticking to. The first is to counter the vast (and increasingly unpopular) power of families that run the chaebol, South Korea’s huge conglomerates. Ms Park’s party is historically pro-chaebol. Her father set up the system that enabled them to flourish with governmental support. But she has promised a tougher line, notably on the system of cross-holdings that permit control of a conglomerate with only a small amount of capital.

At a meeting on December 26th with the Federation of Korean Industries, a chaebollobby group, Ms Park emphasised jobs over profit maximisation. She has also pledged to be tougher on crooked behaviour. In the past decade three chairmen of the largest five chaebol have received presidential pardons following convictions for offences such as fraud and tax evasion. If she sticks to her word, this will stop.

The second strand is the expansion of the welfare state. Ms Park promises to provide free child care for under-fives, and to subsidise social security contributions and university-tuition fees for the poor. On January 1st the national assembly approved 2.4 trillion won ($2.3 billion) of extra welfare spending to pay for all this, as part of the “Park Geun-hye budget”. Old conservatives like the outgoing finance minister, Bahk Jae-wan, have long grumbled about the populism of such measures.

A dangerous neighbourhood

Although Ms Park has undoubtedly shifted her party on domestic issues, foreign policy is unlikely to change much from that of outgoing president, Lee Myung-bak. Ms Park speaks some Chinese and will want to overcome the strains caused by China’s insistence on sending North Korean refugees back home rather than to South Korea, as well as the incursion of Chinese fishing boats into South Korean waters. But relations with America are strong and she will not want to risk them merely to please China. On December 24th, the Obama administration offered South Korea four advanced spy drones.

America’s expansion of its missile-defence programme in Asia raises Chinese concerns about containment. Some analysts say this will make Beijing see South Korea’s alliance with America as part of a wider anti-China strategy, rather than one merely directed at North Korea. There could be problems ahead, regardless of the fluency of Ms Park’s Chinese.

American officials hope Ms Park can repair damaged ties with their other main regional partner, Japan. South Koreans remain angry about colonial-era sex slavery, and the ownership dispute over the Dokdo islands (known as Takeshima in Japan), visited by President Lee in August. Ms Park’s father once served in the Japanese imperial army that occupied northeast China, making it politically impossible for her to show too much kindness to Japan.

Shinzo Abe, Japan’s new premier, sent envoys to meet Ms Park on January 4th in an attempt to ease the tension, but the South Korean press has been working itself into a frenzy over Mr Abe’s strident nationalism. His big majority gives him leeway to be diplomatic, but any move to rescind a 1995 apology for wartime suffering his country caused would be disastrous for the bilateral relationship.

Then there is North Korea. Ms Park has based her approach on reciprocity, pitched halfway between the “sunshine” policy of former presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun, and the frostiness of Mr Lee. She says she will start with small economic projects and humanitarian aid, and engage further if the North’s leader, Kim Jong Un, chooses diplomacy with the South. She calls it “trustpolitik”.

On January 1st Mr Kim gave the first new year’s speech by a North Korean leader for 19 years, calling for an end to confrontation. But, although the style may mark a change, his demand for the implementation of old sunshine-era agreements is likely to leave Ms Park unmoved. Experience shows that one of the few things North Korea can be trusted to do is to continue developing nuclear weapons. Mr Kim may well test a device soon. Ms Park will need to be prepared.

from the print edition | Asia